Memory structure and method of manufacturing the same

ABSTRACT

A memory structure and its manufacturing method are provided. The memory structure includes a substrate, a tunnel dielectric layer on the substrate and a floating gate on the tunnel dielectric layer. The substrate has a source region and a drain region, and the source region and the drain region are formed on two opposite sides of the floating gate. The memory structure also includes an inter-gate dielectric layer on the floating gate and a control gate on the inter-gate dielectric layer. The memory structure further includes a doping region buried in the floating gate, wherein a sidewall of the doping region is exposed at a sidewall of the floating gate. Also, the doping region and the inter-gate dielectric layer are separated from each other.

BACKGROUND Field of the Disclosure

The present disclosure relates to a memory structure and a method ofmanufacturing the same, and in particular, it relates to a non-volatilememory structure and a method of manufacturing the same.

Description of the Related Art

Non-volatile memory structures can be categorized into two types,according to their write mechanism: read-only memory (ROM) and flashmemory. Categorization is dependent upon whether the data in the memorycan be rewritten at any time. Although flash memory does not offerarbitrary random-access rewrite or erase operations, it offersrandom-access read and programming operations. Also, flash memory costsmuch less than read-only memory and had become the dominant memory typewherever a system required a significant amount of non-volatilesolid-state storage.

In general, a flash memory contains two gates. One gate is a floatinggate for storing data, and the other gate is a control gate for inputand output of data. The floating gate is positioned under the controlgate and is in a “floating” state. The so-called “floating” means thatthis gate is surrounded and isolated with an insulating material toprevent loss of charge. The control gate is electrically connected tothe word line to control the device. One of the advantages of flashmemory is that one or more selected blocks or sections can be entirelyerased. Flash memory is widely used in enterprise servers, storage andnetworking technologies, and a variety of consumer electronics, such asuniversal serial bus (USB) flash drives, mobile phones, digital cameras,tablets, personal computer memory cards for laptops and embeddedcontrollers.

Although existing non-volatile memory structures and methods ofmanufacturing the same have generally been adequate for their intendedpurposes, they have not been entirely satisfactory in all respects.There are still some problems to be overcome in regards to the memorystructures and its manufacturing methods.

SUMMARY

In some embodiments of the disclosure, a memory structure is provided.The memory structure includes a substrate and a tunnel dielectric layeron the substrate, wherein the substrate has a source region and a drainregion. In some embodiments, the memory structure also includes afloating gate on the tunnel dielectric layer, wherein the source regionand the drain region are formed on two opposite sides of the floatinggate. In some embodiments, the memory structure also includes aninter-gate dielectric layer on the floating gate and a control gate onthe inter-gate dielectric layer. In some embodiments, the memorystructure further includes a doping region buried in the floating gate,and a sidewall of the doping region is exposed at a sidewall of thefloating gate, wherein the doping region and the inter-gate dielectriclayer are separated from each other.

In some embodiments of the disclosure, a method of manufacturing amemory structure is provided. In some embodiments, the method includesproviding a substrate and forming a tunnel dielectric layer on thesubstrate, wherein the substrate has a source region and a drain region.In some embodiments, the method also includes forming a floating gate onthe tunnel dielectric layer, wherein the source region and the drainregion are formed on two opposite sides of the floating gate. In someembodiments, the method also includes forming an inter-gate dielectriclayer on the floating gate and forming a control gate on the inter-gatedielectric layer. In some embodiments, the method further includesforming a doping region in the floating gate. According to theembodiment of the memory structure, a sidewall of the doping region isexposed at a sidewall of the floating gate, and the doping region isseparated from the inter-gate dielectric layer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure can be further understood by reading thesubsequent detailed description and examples with references made to theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1A-FIG. 1F are cross-sectional views of various stages ofmanufacturing a memory structure in accordance with some embodiments ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2A-FIG. 2C are cross-sectional views of various stages ofmanufacturing a memory structure in accordance with some embodiments ofthe present invention, which show another manufacturing processfollowing the step of FIG. 1D.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a memory structure in amanufacturing stage in accordance with some embodiments of the presentinvention.

FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of a conventional flash memory.

FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view of a memory structure in accordancewith one embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure is described in detail with reference to thefigures of the embodiments of the present disclosure. It should beappreciated, however, that the present disclosure can be embodied in awide variety of implements and is not limited to embodiments describedin the disclosure. Various features may be arbitrarily drawn atdifferent scales for the sake of simplicity and clarity. Someembodiments are described below. Throughout the various views andillustrative embodiments, similar reference numbers are used todesignate similar features/components.

FIG. 1A-FIG. 1F are cross-sectional views of various stages ofmanufacturing a memory structure in accordance with some embodiments ofthe present invention. Referring to FIG. 1A, a substrate 101 isprovided. In some embodiments, the substrate 101 may include silicon,gallium arsenide, gallium nitride, germanium silicide, asemiconductor-on-insulator (SOD, another suitable substrate material, ora combination thereof. Also, the substrate 101 of the memory structureincludes a source region and a drain region (not shown in FIG. 1A-FIG.1F).

In one embodiment, a tunnel dielectric material layer 103, a floatinggate material layer 105 and an inter-gate dielectric material layer 107are sequentially formed on the substrate 101. The tunnel dielectricmaterial layer 103 may be an oxide layer. The floating gate materiallayer 105 may include polysilicon, and can be formed by deposition.Also, the floating gate material layer 105 may be selectively doped withdopants. For example, n-type dopants, such as phosphorous, can beimplanted into the floating gate material layer 105 such that thefloating gate material layer 105 has an n-type conductivity. Inaddition, the floating gate material layer 105 may be a single layerstructure or a multilayer structure. In one embodiment, the inter-gatedielectric material layer 107 may include several layers of dielectricmaterials, and can be formed as a multilayer structure. For example, theinter-gate dielectric material layer 107 may be an oxide-nitride-oxide(ONO) structure.

Referring to FIG. 1A, a control gate 109 and a mask layer 111 are formedabove the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107. The control gate 109may include polysilicon. A material layer containing polysilicon can bedeposited on the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107 by anysuitable deposition process, and then etched to form stacks eachcontaining a control gate 109 and a mask layer 111. Also, the mask layer111 may include one or more oxides, such as tetraethyl orthosilicate(TEOS). In one embodiment, the etching process stops on the inter-gatedielectric material layer 107. Also, the control gate 109 may beselectively doped with dopants. In addition, the control gate 109 may bea single layer structure or a multilayer structure. As shown in FIG. 1A,the trenches 113 and 114 are formed between two stacks, and each stackcontains a control gate 109 and a mask layer 111 on the control gate109, In one embodiment, positions of the trenches 113 and 114 arecorresponding to the source region and the drain region of the memorystructure, respectively.

Referring to FIG. 1B, an insulating layer 121 and spacers 123 are formedto cover sidewalls of the mask layer 111, sidewalls of the control gate109 and parts of the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107. In oneembodiment, an insulating material layer and a spacer material layer canbe sequentially deposited to cover the stacks of the control gates 109and the mask layers 111. Afterward, an etching process is performed toremove the portions of the insulating material layer and the spacermaterial layer on the top surfaces of the mask layers 111, and alsoremove another portions of the insulating material layer and the spacermaterial layer on the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107, therebyforming the insulating layer 121 and the spacers 123. As shown in FIG.1B, after the insulating layer 121 and the spacers 123 are formed, thetrenches 113 and 114 expose the portions 107 b and 107 b of the topsurface of the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107, respectively.In one embodiment, the insulating material layer includes an oxide, suchas silicon oxide, and the insulating material is about 5 nm to about 10nm thick. In one embodiment, the spacer material layer includes anitride, such as silicon nitride, and the spacer material layer is about10 nm to about 30 nm thick.

Referring to FIG. 1C, a patterned photoresist 125 is then formed on thestacks of the control gates 109 and the mask layers 111. In oneembodiment, the patterned photoresist 125 covers parts of the topsurface 111 a of the mask layers 111, as shown in FIG. 1C. According toone embodiment of the memory structure, the patterned photoresist 125does not fill the trench 114, and the portion 107 a of the top surfaceof the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107 exposed by the patternedphotoresist 125 is corresponding to a drain region (not shown in FIG.1C) of the memory structure. Also, the patterned photoresist 125 fillsinto the trench 113 and covers the portion 107 b of the top surface ofthe inter-gate dielectric material layer 107, wherein the portion 107 bis corresponding to a source region (not shown in FIG. 1C) of the memorystructure.

Referring to FIG. 1D, an ion implantation process 130 is performed onthe lower portion of the floating gate material layer 105 at an angle θ1on one side of the spacers 123 to form a doping region 132. In thisexample, the dopants implanted into the doping region 132 and thedopants implanted into the floating gate material layer 105 haveopposite conductivity types. In one embodiment, the floating gatematerial layer 105 has an n-type conductivity by implanting with n-typedopants, and the doping region 132 has an p-type conductivity byimplanting with p-type dopants (such as boron). Also, in one embodiment,the doping concentration of the doping region 132 is greater than thedoping concentration of the floating gate material layer 105.

It is noted that the arrangement of the insulating layer 121 and thespacers 123 not only protect the control gate 109 on the inter-gatedielectric material layer 107 during the ion implantation process 130,but also prevent the dopants are implanted into an upper portion of thefloating gate material layer 105 by controlling the thickness of thespacers 123. In other words, the doping region 132 can be formed only inthe lower portion of the floating gate material layer 105 by forming thespacers 123 with an adequate thickness.

Referring to FIG. 1E, the patterned photoresist 125 is removed. Then,the spacers 123 can be optionally removed. After the spacers 123 isremoved, the remaining portions of the insulating layer 121 covers thesidewalls of the control gates 109 and the sidewalls of the mask layers111. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited inthis embodiment, which illustrates the removal of the spacers 123 in themethod of manufacturing the memory structure. In the present disclosure,the spacers 123 may not be removed. In some other embodiments, anetching step as illustrated in FIG. 1F can be performed directly afterthe patterned photoresist 125 is removed.

Referring to FIG. 1F, an etching process such as a dry etching processis performed. The inter-gate dielectric material layer 107, the floatinggate material layer 105, and the tunnel dielectric material layer 103are etched by an etching mask formed of the mask layer 111 and theinsulating layer 121, thereby forming an inter-gate dielectric layer207, a floating gate layer 205 and a tunnel dielectric layer 203,respectively. In one embodiment, this etching process is a self-alignedetching process. In one embodiment, this etching process is a reactiveion etching process. In this exemplification, the sidewalls of theinter-gate dielectric layer 207, the sidewalls 205 s of the floatinggate layer 205 and the sidewalls of the tunnel dielectric layer 203 aresubstantially aligned after the etching process is performed. Also, thesidewalls of the inter-gate dielectric layer 207 are aligned with thesidewalls 121 s of the insulating layer 121. Accordingly, the width W ofthe floating gate layer 205 is greater than the width of the controlgate 109. However, the present disclosure is not limited to thisdisclosed embodiment.

It is particularly mentioned that the doping region 132 is buried in thelower portion of the floating gate 205, and the sidewall 132 s of thedoping region 132 is exposed at the sidewall 205 s of the floating gate205. Since the doping region 132 and the inter-gate dielectric layer 207are separated from each other, the capacitance between the floating gate205 and the control gate 109 would not be reduced. In one embodiment,the top edge 132E of the doping region 132 is separated from the topsurface 205 a of the floating gate 205 by the distance d1. In oneembodiment, the ratio of the distance d1 to the thickness H of thefloating gate 205 is in a range of ½ to ⅔.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 1F, the bottom surface 132 b of the dopingregion 132 contacts the top surface 203 a of the tunnel dielectric layer203. In one embodiment, the doping region 132 extends a distance, suchas the distance d2 labelled in FIG. 1F, from the sidewall 205 s of thefloating gate 205 toward the inside of the floating gate 205. In oneembodiment, the ratio of the distance d2 to the width W of the floatinggate 205 is in a range of about ⅕ to about ¼.

According to the aforementioned embodiment, the doping region 132containing the dopants of the first conductivity type is separated fromthe inter-gate dielectric layer 207. That is, there is still a portionof the floating gate 205 (having a different conductivity type than thedoping region 132) above the doping region 132 and between the dopingregion 132 and the inter-gate dielectric layer 207. However, the presentdisclosure is not limited to this arrangement. In some otherembodiments, another doping region 134 can be further formed on thedoping region 132, wherein the conductivity type of the doping region134 is different from the conductivity type of the doping region 132.

FIG. 2A-FIG. 2C are cross-sectional views of various stages ofmanufacturing a memory structure in accordance with some embodiments ofthe present invention, which show another manufacturing processfollowing the step of FIG. 1D. Also, the materials and forming method ofthe features/components in FIG. 2A are identical to those in FIG.1A-FIG. 1E and have been described above. For the sake of simplicity andclarity, those identical contents are not repeated herein.

Referring to FIG. 2B, in one embodiment, an ion implantation process 140is performed on the upper portion of the floating gate material layer105 at an angle θ2 on one side of the spacers 123, thereby forminganother doping region 142 above the doping region 132. In thisexemplified embodiment, the conductivity type of the dopants implantedinto the doping region 142 is the same as the conductivity type of thedopants implanted into the floating gate material layer 105, but it isthe opposite of the conductivity type of the dopants implanted into thedoping region 132. In one embodiment, the doping region 142 has ann-type conductivity by implanting with n-type dopants. For example,dopants such as phosphorous are implanted into the doping region 142.

Referring to FIG. 2C, an etching process such as a dry etching processis performed. The mask layer 111 and the insulating layer 121 as formedabove the inter-gate dielectric material layer 107 act as an etchingmask in the etching process. The inter-gate dielectric material layer107, the floating gate material layer 105 and the tunnel dielectricmaterial layer 103 are etched by this etching mask to form an inter-gatedielectric layer 207, a floating gate layer 205 and a tunnel dielectriclayer 203 respectively.

As shown in FIG. 2C, the doping region 132 is formed in the lowerportion of the floating gate 205, and the doping region 142 is formed inthe upper portion of the floating gate 205. Also, the sidewall 132 s ofthe doping region 132 and the sidewall 142 s of the doping region 142are exposed at the sidewall of the floating gate 205. The doping region142 may contact or not contact the doping region 132 that is under thedoping region 142. In addition, the doping region 142 can be in directcontact with the inter-gate dielectric layer 207 above, or can beseparated from the inter-gate dielectric layer 207 above. As shown inFIG. 2C, the top surface of the doping region 142 is in direct contactwith the inter-gate dielectric layer 207.

It is particularly mentioned that the formation of the doping region 142prevents the doping region 132 from diffusing in the subsequenthigh-temperature process and approaching or even contacting theinter-gate dielectric layer 207. In addition, the capacitance betweenthe floating gate 205 and the control gate 109 would not be affectedsince the dopants contained in the doping region 142 and the inter-gatedielectric layer 207 have the same conductivity type. Also, in oneembodiment, the doping concentration of the doping region 142 is greaterthan the doping concentration of the floating gate 205 so that a totalcapacitance between the floating gate 205 and the control gate 109 canbe increased, and the writing and erasing speeds of the memory structurecan be improved.

According to the embodiments above, a single-sided ion implantationprocess is performed on the floating gate material layer 105 through thetrench 114 for forming a doping region in the floating gate 205, whereinthe doping region is positioned adjacent to the drain region. However,in some other embodiments, such as the embodiment of a structure havinga common drain region, two ion implantation processes can besimultaneously performed on opposite sides of two adjacent memorystructures through the trench 114. Therefore, the doping regions in thefloating gates 205 of the two adjacent memory structures can be formedsimultaneously, and the doping regions are positioned adjacent to thecommon drain region.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a memory structure in amanufacturing stage in accordance with some embodiments of the presentinvention. The structure of FIG. 3 is similar to the structure of FIG.1D. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, two ion implantationprocesses are simultaneously performed on the lower portions of thefloating gate material layer 105 through the trench 114. Theimplantation processes are performed at an angle θ1 on each side of thespacers 123, thereby forming the doping regions 132A and 132B. In someapplications, the trench 114 is corresponding to a common drain regionof two adjacent memory structures. In one embodiment, the dopantsimplanted into the doping region 132A and the dopants implanted into thefloating gate material layer 132B have opposite conductivity types. Thematerials and forming method of the features/components in FIG. 3identical to those in FIG. 1A-FIG. 1F have been described above and arenot redundantly repeated herein for the sake of simplicity and clarity.In addition, similar to the structure exemplified in FIG. 2B, otherdoping regions, which contain dopants having a different conductivitytype than the dopants in the doping regions 132A and 132B, can also beformed on respective doping regions 132A and 132B.

FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view of a conventional flash memory. FIG.4B is a cross-sectional view of a memory structure in accordance withone embodiment of the present invention. Similar or identicalfeatures/components depicted in FIG. 4B and FIG. 1F are designated withsimilar or identical reference numbers. Also, the materials and formingmethod of the features/components in FIG. 4B are identical to those inFIG. 1A-FIG. 1F and have been described above. For the sake ofsimplicity and clarity, those identical contents in FIG. 4B are notrepeated herein.

Referring to FIG. 4A, the conventional flash memory includes a substrate101 having a source region 302S and a drain region 302D, a tunneldielectric layer 303, a floating gate layer FG, an inter-gate dielectriclayer 307 and a control gate GC. When the write operation of the memorystructure is achieved by channel hot electron injection, the hotelectrons adjacent to the drain region 302D tunnel through the tunneldielectric layer 303 along the direction D_(Y) and into the floatinggate layer FG. However, after several cycles of write operation anderase operation are performed, the hot electrons injected along thedirection D_(Y) and passing through the tunnel dielectric layer 303 maycause damage to the injection position of the tunnel dielectric layer303. Also, the hot electrons tend to accumulate in a region close to theinterface between the floating gate layer FG and the tunnel dielectriclayer 303 and damage the tunnel dielectric layer 303. Data stored in thefloating gate layer FG of a conventional flash memory may be lost due tothe damaged tunnel dielectric layer 303.

Referring to FIG. 4B, a doping region 132 is formed in the lower portionof floating gate layer 205 in accordance with some embodiment, so that aP-N junction consisting of the doping region 132 and the floating gatelayer 205 with opposite conductivity types is produced. When the writeoperation of the memory structure is achieved by channel hot electroninjection, the forces exerting on the hot electrons adjacent to thedrain region 302D include not only the original injection force (alongthe direction D_(Y)) but also a lateral force (along the directionD_(x)) due to the P-N junction produced by the doping region 132.Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4B, the hot electrons tunneling through thetunnel dielectric layer 203 and into the floating gate layer 205 wouldbe subjected to a resultant force along the direction D_(T) (that is, adirection of the resultant force). Accordingly, the hot electrons can bequickly pushed away from the drain region 302D, thereby increasing speedof write operation and reducing voltage applied to the floating gatelayer 205 during a write operation.

According to the aforementioned embodiments, the hot electrons arequickly pushed away from the drain region 302D and injected intofloating gate layer 205 obliquely (the hot electrons being subjected toan oblique resultant force), so it is less tendency for the hotelectrons accumulating in a region close to the interface between thefloating gate layer 205 and the tunnel dielectric layer 203. Also, thevoltage applied to the floating gate layer 205 during a write operationcan be reduced, so the tunnel dielectric layer 203 would not be easilydamaged. After several cycles of write operation and erase operation areperformed, the tunnel dielectric layer 203 is not easily damaged and hasa good property. Thus, data stored in the floating gate layer 205 of thememory structure in accordance with some embodiments is less likely tobe lost.

In addition, the doping region 132 in the lower portion of the floatinggate 205 is separated from the inter-gate dielectric layer 207 by adistance, such as the distance d1. That is, the portion above the dopingregion 132 is still part of the floating gate 205. Accordingly, thecapacitance between the floating gate 205 and the control gate 109 isalmost the same. For example, as shown in FIG. 4B, the capacitance C1 isapproximately equal to the capacitance C2 without affecting thecapacitive coupling ratio between the floating gate 205 and the controlgate 109. Thus, a stable operating voltage can be maintained during thewrite operation. Also, the operating voltage needs to be increased dueto the change of the capacitance between the gates, but it may causedamage to the inter-gate dielectric layer 207. According to thestructural design provided in the embodiments, the memory structure canbe operated by a stable operating voltage and the inter-gate dielectriclayer 207 is not easily damaged, so that the memory structure hasimproved reliability.

According to the aforementioned memory structure of some embodiments, adoping region is formed in the lower portion of the floating gate layer.The sidewall of the doping region is exposed at the sidewall of thefloating gate, and the doping region is separated from the inter-gatedielectric layer by a distance. In one embodiment, the doping region andthe floating gate layer contain different conductivity types of dopants.Also, according to some embodiments of the aforementioned method ofmanufacturing a memory structure, a memory structure with a self-alignedprofile can be obtained. In addition, in order to simplify the drawings,the drawings used in the above embodiments (as shown in FIG. 1A-FIG. 3)only depict three memory structures formed on the substrate forillustration. However, the present disclosure does not limit the actualnumbers of the memory structures of a memory device in the application.A memory device may include several memory structures as provided in theabove embodiments. Also, the memory structures in accordance with someembodiments can be different types of non-volatile memory structures.The memory structures in accordance with some embodiments can be appliedto any memory structure containing a floating gate.

The memory structure as manufactured in accordance with some embodimentsincludes a doping region in the lower portion of the floating gatelayer, and has several advantages, such as accelerating the speed of thewrite operation, reducing the operating voltage during the writeoperation, improving the stability of the data storage, etc. Thus, thememory structure in accordance with some embodiments has a relativelystable electrical performance. Consequently, the yield and reliabilityof the final product can be improved.

While the disclosure has been described by way of example and in termsof the preferred embodiments, it should be understood that thedisclosure is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. On the contrary,it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements(as would be apparent to those skilled in the art). Therefore, the scopeof the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation soas to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements.

1. A memory structure, comprising: a substrate having a source regionand a drain region; a tunnel dielectric layer on the substrate; afloating gate on the tunnel dielectric layer, wherein the source regionand the drain region are formed on two opposite sides of the floatinggate; an inter-gate dielectric layer on the floating gate; a controlgate on the inter-gate dielectric layer, wherein a width of the controlgate is less than a width of the floating gate; and a doping regionburied in the floating gate, and a sidewall of the doping region exposedat a sidewall of the floating gate, wherein the doping region and theinter-gate dielectric layer are separated from each other.
 2. The memorystructure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the doping region includesdopants with an opposite conductivity type of dopants in the floatinggate.
 3. The memory structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein a top edgeof the doping region is separated from a top surface of the floatinggate by a first distance, and a ratio of the first distance to athickness of the floating gate is in a range of ½ to ⅔.
 4. The memorystructure as claimed in claim 3, wherein the doping region extends asecond distance from the sidewall of the floating gate to an innerportion of the floating gate, and a ratio of the second distance to awidth of the floating gate is in a range of ⅕ to ¼.
 5. The memorystructure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the doping region is a firstdoping region containing dopants of a first conductivity type, and thememory structure further comprises: a second doping region in thefloating gate, wherein the second doping region is formed above thefirst doping region, and the second doping region contains dopants of asecond conductivity type that is the opposite of the first conductivitytype.
 6. The memory structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the dopingregion is disposed adjacent to the drain region.
 7. A method ofmanufacturing a memory structure, comprising: providing a substratehaving a source region and a drain region; forming a tunnel dielectriclayer on the substrate; forming a floating gate on the tunnel dielectriclayer, wherein the source region and the drain region are formed on twoopposite sides of the floating gate; forming an inter-gate dielectriclayer on the floating gate; and forming a control gate on the inter-gatedielectric layer, wherein a width of the control gate is less than awidth of the floating gate; wherein a doping region is formed in thefloating gate, a sidewall of the doping region is exposed at a sidewallof the floating gate, and the doping region is separated from theinter-gate dielectric layer.
 8. The method of manufacturing the memorystructure as claimed in claim 7, further comprising: forming a floatinggate material layer above the substrate; forming an inter-gatedielectric material layer on the floating gate material layer; formingthe control gate on the inter-gate dielectric material layer; forming aninsulating layer on the control gate to cover sidewalls of the controlgate and parts of the inter-gate dielectric material layer; formingspacers on sidewalls of the insulating layer; and implanting ions into alower portion of the floating gate material layer on one side of thespacers to form the doping region.
 9. The method of manufacturing thememory structure as claimed in claim 8, further comprising: removing thespacers after the doping region is formed.
 10. The method ofmanufacturing the memory structure as claimed in claim 9, furthercomprising: etching the inter-gate dielectric material layer and thefloating gate material layer by an etching mask formed of the insulatinglayer to form the inter-gate dielectric layer and the control gate,respectively.